The Chargers last season had the NFL’s worst third-down defense since 1995. They suffered injuries to key player after key player, including the demoralizing loss of left guard Kris Dielman in late October. But, ultimately, a too-soon ending to the season was on Rivers.

The Chargers had perhaps their most productive offseason ever, maybe improving their starting lineup and definitely padding depth with solid veterans. They appear to have tapped a Lights Out kind of electricity with first-round draft pick Melvin Ingram. Antonio Gates’ elusive health appears to have been found. But, still, the potential for success is only as great as Philip Rivers’ return to greatness.

Rivers was horrible when the Chargers needed him most in 2011. He led the league with 17 picks through the first 10 games, and with him putting together a succession of sub-par games, the Chargers fell from 4-1 to 4-7 before winning four of five.

The quarterback can’t be a liability. Especially not the quarterback of this team.

This is all being said by someone who just a few days ago wrote he’d take Rivers as his team’s QB 20 times out of 19. I couldn’t think more highly of him — on or off the field.

It’s short-sighted, simple and too Super Bowl-centric to not include Rivers among the top five quarterbacks in the NFL. Even after throwing a career-high 20 interceptions in 2011, Rivers ranks third in the NFL in passer rating (95.8) among quarterbacks who have started at least 70 games since 2006. He is third with 162 touchdowns and 8.03 yards per pass attempt. His 201 completions that have gone for 25 yards or more are second only to Drew Brees.

It’s definitely unfair and might even border on ignorant to say Rivers was the Chargers’ biggest problem in 2011 and that he is the axis by which they tilt one way or another in ‘12.

But that’s the way it is.

“Way up there at the top of the list,” Rivers said when I asked him where he fit among the reasons the Chargers missed the playoffs a second straight season. “I think that’s part of the position. When you get in, a lot of times you had a big hand in it. And if you don’t, usually, if the quarterback is not playing really good, it’s hard to overcome bad play at that position.”

Rivers spoke while sitting at a park near his home on Friday.

The interview took place on camera for a segment on Monday’s debut of “The Sports Page,” a daily half-hour show on UT-TV (Cox Channel 114 and uttv.com) that will focus entirely on local sports.

Annie Heilbrunn and I will host the half-hour program at 1:30 p.m. each weekday. We’ll have news, analysis, interviews and guests, as we delve deeper into local sports than anything done on television here before.

Last week, we hired a producer for our show, Andrew Burer, a local kid who seems to have memorized an awful lot of information about San Diego prep sports over the last decade. It’s likely that new Executive Sports Editor Larry Graham is at this moment typing up a memo about yet another new hire. The U-T’s multi-platform news organization is expanding on seemingly a daily basis, and that will continue to enhance our print, online and television product

On “The Sports Page,” Annie and I are excited to bring you information and insight into the Padres, San Diego State, USD, high schools and pretty much everything else that can be included as a San Diego sport.

But we know the local sports scene revolves around a Chargers sun.

And that sun burns with Philip Rivers’ white hot intensity.

“This offseason flew by, thankfully,” Rivers said. “It couldn’t get to this new season soon enough — in large part because of the way I played individually and, I think, because it was another year of we didn’t get in, there was all the talk about coach, and we had a bunch of free agent acquisitions.”

He went on to talk about the long process of trying to jell with the new receivers, the importance of Gates’ foot feeling fine and his own legacy, among other topics. He’s always fascinating.